Babble about my life and ever-changing interests

Category Archives: Patterns

Post navigation

Happy Thorsday, little friday, Thankful Thursday, 3rd day of Christmas and more. Gretchen has a cute little postup today about some of her favorite parts of Christmas thus far…

So, today’s post is really a finished object report, but first, the hound connection. I met Kari through blogging. Her departed Fred, a bloodhound, had food issues too, so bonding wasn’t hard to do! Kari lives in Texas, so when she announced she was expecting, I knew just what I wanted to knit for her…

It had to be lightweight and easy-care, because I’m pretty sure Haylie – the beautiful chocolate lab – thinks Kari is just the incubator for HER two-legged baby. Enter the Tofutsies Blanket.

The fur-girls had to make sure the blankie really was suitable for Mini-K. Long-time readers might recall that baby Sissy had a SERIOUS problem with Tofutsies as a pup. Maybe even then, she was trying to tell us she needed a fish kibble? (If that sounds crazy, just keep reading.)

Pattern: Stringtown’s Tofutsies Baby Blanket. What a FABULOUS, simple pattern! Look out friends… I have a ton of Tofutsies (and a friend with a yarn shop that stocks it), so more of these might be coming. It’s a car seat/stroller sized blankie, and it’s just light and lofty.

Courtesy of Ravelry & SWTC

My only modification was to use “scraps” as Tofutsies skeins are nice and large so I generally have enough left over to do a pair of footies or something. I was inspired to transition between colors by the Tofu Tee, which is also knit with Tofutsies, holding two strands together.

Yarn: Duh? Tofutsies in assorted colors. I love this yarn because it’s the easiest care light fingering weight yarn ever. It has loft -gets light and fluffy – so it’s great for blankets and baby clothes yet still does great socks and shawls too. It is splitty, but that doesn’t bother me. I just don’t use pointy tips with this yarn.

But what you REALLY need to know is that it is a blend of superwash wool, “soysilk”, cotton and chitin – made from shrimp and crab shells. (Hence baby Sis’s fascination with the yarn!)

Needles: US #8 circs

Verdict: Well, I’ve already said it; I see more of these in my future! It was a quick, fun knit and I know it will serve baby Mini-K well, without causing her parents any trouble with special care needs. I just hope Haylie doesn’t love the yarn as much as baby Sissy did!

Obviously, I’m thankful for Tofutsies, but I’m also thankful for all the wee ones coming into the world right now. Several of my friends who have had or are having babies have had a few more challenges than some on the path, so that makes the babies all the more treasured.

Thankfully, both of our local friends who had to have surgery are doing okay. One is back home even!

I’m really thankful though for all of our doggy-bloggy friends. It cracks me up when I think about how I started a blog just so I could participate in a swap, and now Chanknits is barely accurate, as Chan doesn’t knit much at all these days…

Oh, I have knitted with my own handspun, but it’s been a while, and it’s been ridiculously infrequent. While I don’t have a photo of the fiber or the yarn in a hank, it appears I spun it in the fall of 2009 on my first wheel, the Heavenly Handspinning Bellus.

It seems I never reported on the fiber to yarn process, so let me capture some of that now too.

Fiber: Gypsyknits BFL, c/o Gypsyknits Pure heaven. If you haven’t spun with BFL, do. It is a GREAT novice spinner fiber. Its staple length (the length of each single hair from the sheepy-sheep) is long enough to not be too hard to spin, soft enough to be worn next to the face or neck, and even in a novice’s hands, it has sproing and a touch of loft.

Yarn: Over-spun, under-spun, but roughly DK at 15 wraps per inch. In reality, it ranges from laceweight to worsted.

Plying: Navajo plied… the only way I ply unless I’m using an accent thread or something. In plainer language, it is a 3-ply yarn.

Verdict: For my first “real” effort with “good” fiber, it’s pretty impressive. I’ve come a long way as a spinner, but this is nothing to be ashamed of.

Yarn: See above, but note that this photo is the most accurate on my monitor for the hues…

Needles: Body of hat, US #8 16″ bamboo circular. At least a size too large for most of the yarn, but I like a hat that breathes, so it suits me just fine. #6 metal dpns used for crown decreases and i-cord.

Verdict: This hat will work for the ponytail-less too, but unless you have a long enough mane for a HIGH ponytail, this probably isn’t the design for you. I’ll get plenty of use though because when my hair isn’t a in ponytail (generally a lower one) for dog walks, it’s in a clip of some sort, and those don’t sit well under most hats either.

Yarn verdict? I’ve dragged out more of my handspun still in my stash and I’m going to knit with it more often! I do regret that I didn’t use but about half of the ball for this project, but luckily, I have a friend with two little boys who is willing to care for an extra-finicky handspun handknit hat. If I knit it this year for the eldest boy, the two of them should get lots of wear out of it, right?

Ravelry says I started Tealsplitter in August. Seems longer ago than that. I hope y’all enjoy the photos, because the more I look at them, the less I like them. The Knight was kind enough to snap them, so don’t fuss about a lack of smiles, poses, etc.

Pattern: Lanesplitter. Another great, free pattern from Knitty! It’s a rectangle, knitted on a bias, seamed, then a cotton, interior waistband is knitted in the round, tacked down, elastic pulled through, hole sewn shut, and it’s a skirt.

The actual knitting took no time at all. It was the waistband that slowed me down. Some people lined theirs or used a sewing machine for the waistband, but I lack anything beyond button attachment skills…

See the seam?

I didn’t love the skirt when finished. It did a funky bell-thing with my “athletic” thighs. But a vigorous blocking made it better, and these photos were taken after about 9 hours of wear. I want to try it next with either a denim shirt or vest… And I opted to wear the seam on the side, because I didn’t like the seam up the center back as most seem to wear it!

Yarn: Plymouth Boku, color 10. I really like this yarn! It does have some vegetation issues (think grass seed, evidently processed with the fleece that became the wool?), but I tend to prefer their color combinations over Noro’s, and it’s available at Dog House Yarns, which is my almost exclusive resource.

I wore it with rather non-descript tights and there was no itching. I did tend to tug at it – especially in the very front, to lengthen it back out after sitting down for a while.

I used Lion Brand Cotton in seaspray for the waistband because it kinda’ matched and I find it to be a decent “utility” cotton.

Needles: US #7. Sorry… I don’t recall more!

Pre-finishing, seam view

Verdict: It was a fun knit that proved to me I can knit a skirt I’ll wear. Now I’m a little skirt and dress obsessed and have several patterns in the wings.

My weekend plans include writing another post about this for the Dog House blog, blocking another finished object or two and finishing the capelet. Might be a bit ambitious…

Okay. I give up. We’ll likely have a frost the next night or two, so clearly it’s nearly past time to blog my “summer cotton shawl”. I was waiting to block it, but I’m also already a couple of FO reports behind…

For those of you who aren’t lace knitters, the fact that it’s cotton means there will be no drastic changes. Cotton doesn’t lend itself to the wonders of blocking… honestly, I sometimes use a steam iron to “block” cotton projects.

Anyway, I present Quake-icane… thus named because it was a work in progress for an earthquake, lots of aftershocks and a hurricane!

Yarn: Cascade’s Ultra Pima. Wow. Soft stuff. Didn’t make my hands hurt, and hasn’t gotten fuzzy either… not that it would get too fuzzy being moved from one spot to another on the back of the loveseat. Hem.

Needles: US #7 circulars, Addi Clicks.

Verdict: Some of the ladies have made multiples of this shawl. If I was a fan of weighty, cotton wraps, I could see that happening.

Anything fun on your weekend agenda? Celebration week begins for me tomorrow, with gMarie‘s birthday… but I’ll share more about all the other celebrations later!

I had a great weekend with wonderful girlfriends, but no photos to show for it, so we’ll move right along to my stream of consciousness approach to knitting. I do have one project on the needles that really speaks to me, so I’m trying to knit fast before I get distracted!

Currently, I’m working on the Cascade Kid Seta Cardigan, in Kid Seta in crimson. It really is a great, rich, cool red, so don’t let your monitor fool you!

I like the pattern so well I’m tackling this even though there are seams everywhere. I love the yarn, the color… everything, so much so that facing all those seams in the end isn’t even upsetting (yet). I’m already dreaming of wearing it with my green dress for the holidays. That’s not too much draping, is it? (For those who didn’t click over, the dress has a draped neckline.)

Oh yeah – and the color…

It really is deeper/richer/bluer than that. I’m also about double that deep, and that’s the back unfolding. The Knight’s crew at the firehouse doubts that I’ll have it done for Christmas. Hrmph. Maybe if mojo fails me, that challenge won’t?

Capelet by BabyCocktails

Also on my radar is this darling capelet. I’m still a little worried about the turtleneck aspect – because I suddenly can’t stand to have anything around my neck – but that neck also gets cold quickly, as do my shoulders. I’m also liking several other BabyCocktail patterns. Any of you have any experience with her patterns?

What color should I do the capelet in… you know, on the off chance I actually finish the cardigan and cast on? I’m seeing it in a heather grey for some reason…

I’m mad for sweater dresses this season too. We’ll see if that holds as the temperature drops, but I’m sure lusting after lots of them. The latest is this red number from DressBarn. Why yes, I do seem to be seeing red. Ironically, the only red in my wardrobe at this very second is a bright red mock turtleneck…

I also seem to have a thing for cowls. Yeah, I have several of the knitted neck warmers called cowls, but at the moment, I’m meaning cowl necked tops. They provide warmth for the back of my neck without that choking feeling.

Hem. Don’t let the fact that it took two years and a few months to finish this project dissuade you. This is one of my favorite projects EVER.

Project: MooSonI’ve known since before I cast on that this item was destined for a friend. The yarn was even dyed by a mutual friend, just for this project.

Pattern: Moonlight Sonata ShawlIt’s certainly not the pattern’s fault that I kept putting this down. It’s a well-written, easy to read (meaning the lace itself) pattern. Life just kept getting in the way and I kept shuffling this project aside.

Yarn: Gypsyknits Merino Superwash in a custom color. I simply told Kathywhat pattern I had selected and she blended the hues with Jessi in mind. I know Jessi loves it, but I’m thinking I’m going to have to make myself footies or a narrow scarf out of the leftovers. Unfortunately, Kathy isn’t dyeing yarns right now, but hopefully one of these days, life will cooperate and we’ll all have the pleasure of seeing more of her fabulous colors play out in yarn!

Needles: Ravelry says I used a US #5 circular. That’s all I can tell you. That’s what happens when you drag a project out forever.

Verdict: I’d definitely consider this pattern again. Maybe one day when it’s not 104 with a heat index far above that, Jessi will model it for all of us, but she’s in the deep south, so don’t look for that photo before oh… late November?

Because of the soft green in there, I also considered this a green project spectrum project.

I’m looking forward to my cloudy with a chance of drizzle weekend. I plan on doing a lot of knitting, some League work, some shopping because fewer and fewer of my clothes fit, and I still have hopes for a movie with the Knight whether he likes it or not. What’s on your weekend agenda?

Pattern: Aragante, my first short-row, side to side shawl. I can honestly say I’d knit this one again. It was a pleasant, quick knit, and I’m delighted with the results. Is it a scarf or a shawlette? Dunno, but I like it.

Unblocked

Yarn: Pout. No, the yarn’s not called Pout, but that’s what I do every time I think about Springvalley aka: Alabama Fiber Dreams not really existing anymore. Jessi has a great eye for color and really chose good bases for her yarns. She dyed this Outer Banks light fingering with me – and our vacation spot – in mind, and I couldn’t love it more.

Needles: US #7 Addi Clicks circs. I love my Addi Clicks. I have found some sizes have smoother joins than others, but…

Lace edge

Verdict: I’ll get a lot of use out of this one. It’s long enough to be a scarf, definitely hugs my shoulders without need of a shawl pin, and did I mention the colors are fabulous?

How ’bout that weekend? I’m looking forward to some time with a friend or two, and I’m trying to figure out how to get to see the last Harry Potter movie. The Knight probably won’t want to go, and honestly, I do enjoy watching them with Gretchen, who definitely is at least part Crup and really is cute with all the head tilting, attentive watching/listening!